The Cliché Essay

© Sean N. Zelda
             Safe to say, I took the bait. I didn’t think outside the box. I was all talk and no action. My Achilles heel was ripe for the taking. What I’m really trying to say is that at the end of the day, I let love in. But a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Sweet surrender. A sweet deal. Or so it seemed.

To beat a dead horse would be beyond me. You’d have to do it yourself. But we were in the same boat. I bent over backwards for you. You made your move and by the same token, my hands were tied. All was lost. We always did the same song and dance. You said your prayers and I constantly saw the glass half empty.

Your shoe is on the other foot and I’m too rich for my blood. Your tongue is tied and I’m under the gun. Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes from this angle. You cannot judge someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes. You had this coming to you. I could whip you with one arm tied behind my back.

I see the forest through the trees. But at the same time, I’d lose my head if it wasn’t attached. Funny how that works. Now we’re in the clear. Love isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. It’s a game of inches. It’s not over ‘til it’s over… and you lost this round. It’s never too late to learn. Learn from your mistakes. Live long and prosper.

I know you like I know the back of my hand. Your love is like a knife through hot butter. It’s not too difficult to get a piece. A penny for your thoughts? I’d like to see you play for the name on the front of your jersey, not the name on the back. Put your money where your mouth is, and put a cork in it while you’re at it.

I’ll lay down the law. Right here, right now. You’re light as a feather, but somehow you weighed me down. Lightning isn’t supposed to strike twice in the same place, but you struck me down like there was no tomorrow. Our love was a long shot from the beginning. Love is blind, but it looks before it leaps.

Our love has passed away. You poured oil on troubled waters and now I’m left here. I hate to say this, but I want my place in the sun. The sweet summer’s sun. Like that sweet summer when we slept silently outside like silhouettes scaling a slick siding. I’ll never take it back. I’ll always live for tomorrow. I’ll always live for right now.